Each day, January 21-27, 2013, the Magic Kingdom filled Town Square with 15 characters, all emerging at once in a grand introduction, taking positions near the front of the park for 30-minute sets. Guests wanting to meet them all happily waited hours in lines filling normally uncrowded park areas to snap a quick photo with each group.

Video: Long Lost Friends introduction, song, and summary

We already shared a few photos from the special week’s first day, including the pre-printed autograph cars that were handed out, but now that this Limited Time Magic has concluded, let’s take a closer look back at each of the Long Lost Friends…

Robin Hood and gang

By far the most popular of the five groups of Long Lost Friends was the one featuring characters from Disney’s 1973 animated movie “Robin Hood.” These characters were among the rarest of the bunch, made even rarer by Disney offering a chance to get a photo with four at once: Friar Tuck, Prince John, the Sheriff of Nottingham, and Robin Hood himself. Though Maid Marion was nowhere to be found, fans of the film were extremely excited to see them.

DuckTales

A pair of Disney’s famous ducks also took center stage during Long Lost Friends week, but only one was a rare character. Straight out of Duckburg, Scrooge McDuck can be seen annually during Mickey’s Very Merry Christmas Party and the Christmas time parade. But seeing Ludwig Von Drake of “Wonderful World of Color” fame around the parks is extremely rare – and a bit odd that Disney categorized him as being from the TV show “DuckTales” when he only appeared in a single episode. But there was definitely no one complaining about him being there.

Video: Ludwig Von Drake and Scrooge McDuck

Three Little Pigs

Tucked away in a corner of Town Square near Tony’s were four characters that used to frequent Disney’s parks decades ago but have rarely been seen since. Fiddler, Fifer, and Practical – better known as the Three Little Pigs – were joined by the Big Bad Wolf in this photo opportunity. It’s the most attention this group has gotten since Disney California Adventure named a cafe after them.

Video: The Three Little Pigs and the Big Bad Wolf

The Band Concert

Dating all the way back to 1935, Disney’s short film “The Band Concert” produced two characters that only the biggest fans recognize at the parks. Though Clarabelle Cow and Horace Horsecollar often appear in the Christmas time parade, meeting them for a photo is indeed a rare opportunity, provided during Long Lost Friends week.

Video: Clarabelle Cow and Horace Horsecollar

Pinocchio

The least rare of the “long lost” characters was the gang from “Pinocchio.” Both Geppetto and Pinocchio himself can be seen daily at the Magic Kingdom during the 3 o’clock parade, which even took place between Limited Time Magic character sets. The pair is also occasionally seen around Epcot. And last year, Jiminy Cricket was taking pictures with guests at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. But long lines still formed to see this trio together.

Video: Pinocchio, Geppetto, and Jiminy Cricket

Though Long Lost Friends week has ended, there are still 11 months of Limited Time Magic remaining and it’s highly likely that another Long Lost Friends week will take place. Fans may also have a chance to vote online for which characters they’d like to see. Among favorites fans are hoping will appear are Darkwing Duck, Launchpad McQuack, and others from the the old Disney Afternoon.

Owner and Editor of Inside the Magic. Since growing up in Miami, Florida and ultimately moving to Orlando after college, Ricky has become an expert on Central Florida's many theme parks and attractions. He founded Inside the Magic in 2005.

7 Comments

Roddy Barros

Is it me or is it kinda said that these characters have to march in holding plaques with their names on it? I’ve made sure that my 6-year-old knows all classics besides new stuff. From those, maybe he couldn’t name some of them, but he’d definitely know where they’re from.

Jen

My young nieces -refuse- to watch older Disney movies/tv shows. They are so use to the 3D Mickey’s Playhouse crap that they don’t want to watch Mickey if he is in a regular animation (a lost art in my opinion). When I have kids I will make them watch the good stuff

Jason

I was just at Disney in November. Had I known about the Classic Characters, I would’ve postponed my trip! Scrooge McDuck and Ludwig von Drake in one picture would be awesome! And I’m a huge fan of Robin Hood. Dang! This would have been really cool!

Based in Orlando, Florida, Inside the Magic was launched in 2005 by Ricky Brigante. The Inside the Magic podcast has since become the longest-running Disney podcast in the world, with a new show having been released every week since its inception.

InsideTheMagic.net still features our weekly podcast covering Disney and all theme park topics, also reaching out to grand openings, special events, conventions, travel, movies, and other pop culture excitement with exclusive interviews, news, high-quality videos, photos, reviews, and much more.